This invention relates generally to the field of window construction, and more particularly to an improved manually displaceable means for completing the seal which exists between a pair of adjacent sash elements when the window is completely closed.
While most windows used for residential construction are of the so-called double hung type, in recent years there has been increased usage of a relatively lower cost horizontally sliding window which is dimensionally wider than high, and in which a pair of sash elements are arranged for movement along a horizontal axis while entrained within upper and lower grooves or tracks. The grooves are relatively deep at the upper end of the window frame, and the sashes are removable from the frame by vertically raising them to a point where the lower edge of the sash element clears the lower groove or track which supports it. Glass patio doors are often constructed in a somewhat similar manner.
In both double hung windows and the horizontally sliding window, it is necessary to provide some type of resilient seal in the area of sash overlap to prevent the entry of cold air into the building. This has been accomplished in a variety of ways, including metallic weather stripping, as well as felt strips and the like. In the case of the horizontally sliding window, there exists a problem in that a portion of such seal must be interrupted at an upper end thereof in order to allow the sash to be raised within the upper groove in order to accomplish the demounting of the sash. While it is possible to place a loose stuffing in this area, it will be readily lost as soon as the sash is , shifted.